After talking to Empire about why film-making wasn’t actually fun, director Gareth Edwards, with credits like Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Jurassic World Rebirth to his name, recently threw his AI opinion into the ring, saying, “I know you’re not supposed to talk about AI in a positive light because it’s the dark robot overlord that will kill us all, but I’m slightly excited about some of the opportunities that are going to come. I get excited because surely now you can make a film for the money I made my first movie with and it looks like $200 million. I think the day it’s all going to change is the day someone makes a movie for just a handful of change, it looks like $200 million, and makes the money a $200 million movie would make.”
It’s An Ironic Take From The Director of TheCreator
The Creator, a sci-fi film released in 2023, is a story set in a dystopian alternate timeline version of the future where AI somehow set off a nuclear detonation in the city of Los Angeles. This kicks off the search for the titular Creator, who brought to life the AI that now threatens mankind and the superweapon he’s created that could end the war. With this premise front and center, it’s a confusing take from the director and co-writer that AI in film could be an exciting notion. Edwards went on to say, “Then I think it’s game over. And that’s just a few dice-rolls away. It’s in the next year or so — in the next cycle of films. So I think it’s never been a better time to be a wannabe filmmaker. It’s probably not the best time to be a rotoscope artist, though.”
It’s ironic that Edwards, lauded as a cinematic artist and a creator of a film denouncing AI, would seemingly be on the side of its use in the industry, taking away opportunities from others in favor of saving money for the studios. It’s even more interesting that these thoughts come on the heels of OpenAI’s Sora release, making AI filmmaking even more accessible to the masses, as well as AI creation Tilly Norwood drawing ire from the film-making community.
What are your thoughts on AI in film and television? Tell us below in the comments and check out the ComicBook forums to see what other fans think.
